SXSW Interactive to See a…

SXSW Interactive to See a Surge of Cannabis Content

The South by Southwest (SXSW) Conference & Festivals, a major gathering in Austin, TX that will celebrate its 31st anniversary this year, is known for allowing attendees to discover the newest original music, independent films, and emerging technologies. Part of event, which runs from March 10-19, includes the SXSW Interactive Festival, which takes place from the 10th through the 16th and offers compelling presentations and panels from the brightest minds in emerging technology, scores of exciting networking events hosted by industry leaders and an unbeatable lineup of special programs showcasing the best new websites, video games and startup ideas the community has to offer.

The event really stepped up its cannabis coverage last year, and this year’s show includes a dramatic expansion again, with many industry leaders converging on Austin to share their knowledge about the cannabis industry. In total, there will be 13 separate panels. In addition to the many panels, one cannabis-focused company, Tokken, is a 2017 SXSW Interactive Innovation Award Finalist in the “New Economy” category, which is “awarded to those redefining the exchange of goods and services, from the sharing economy, to virtual currency, to micro-finance, to mobile-device-payment systems and beyond.”

It’s an honor for all of us at Tokken to be recognized by the SXSW panel as a company bringing creative solutions to the fintech space and solving one of the biggest problems in the history of banking. Tokken is poised to not only extend banking to the emergent legal cannabis industry, but to reshape the way the world pays itself.

Tokken Founder and CEO, Lamine Zarrad

The currently scheduled events kick off on March 10th with Rob Kampia of Marijuana Policy Project moderating Political Strategy for Legalizing Marijuana, with Montel Williams, Steve DeAngelo of Harborside and Zoe Russell of Republicans Against Marijuana Prohibition participating.

On the 13th, Perry Solomon of HelloMD, Seibo Shen of VapeXhale, Debby Miran of DMiran Consulting and Hugh Hempel of Strainz will explore cannabis as medicine, particularly for athletes, during Cannabis for Treatment of Injuries and Illness. Diane Russell, a member of the Maine House of Representatives, Congressman Earl Blumenauer of Oregon, Heather Fazio of Marijuana Policy Project and John Hudak of The Brookings Institute will participate in Politicians’ Viewpoints on Marijuana Legalization. At the same time, Ryan McBean, formerly of the Denver Broncos, Jim McAlpine of 420 Games, Dr. Sue Sisley and Eugene Monroe, formerly of the NFL and now a partner at GTI, will discuss Cannabis & Athletics: A New Paradigm in Sports.

Based in Houston, Alan leverages his experience as founder of online communities 420 Investor, the first and still largest due diligence platform focused on the publicly-traded stocks in the cannabis industry. With his extensive network in the cannabis community, Alan continues to find new ways to connect the industry and facilitate its sustainable growth. At New Cannabis Ventures, he is responsible for content development and strategic alliances. Before shifting his focus to the cannabis industry in early 2013, Alan, who began his career on Wall Street in 1986, worked as an independent research analyst following over two decades in research and portfolio management. A prolific writer, with over 650 articles published since 2007 at Seeking Alpha, where he has 70,000 followers, Alan is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and a frequent source to the media, including the NY Times, the Wall Street Journal, Fox Business, and Bloomberg TV. Contact Alan: Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Email